


Where Is She?!

by Layzhe_06



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Badass Toph Beifong, Gaang (Avatar), Gaang (Avatar) as Family, Gen, Hurt Toph Beifong, Hurt/Comfort, Iroh (Avatar) is a Good Uncle, Iroh (Avatar) loves Tea, Kidnapping, Minor Aang/Katara, Protective Sokka (Avatar), Protective Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong and Zuko are Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:47:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25481155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Layzhe_06/pseuds/Layzhe_06
Summary: The Ozai loyalists are not happy with Team Avatar, so they decide to hit them where it hurts most.Timeline: During the one year gap in The Promise
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Iroh & The Gaang (Avatar), Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong & The Gaang, Toph Beifong & Zuko
Kudos: 107





	1. Dread

**Author's Note:**

> It was supposed to be a really long oneshot, but my notes can't handle it so I just divided it.

"The floors are made of wood. She won't sense you so long as you watch your step." "Why are we taking the earthbender again?" "The new 'Fire Lord' and his friends have a soft spot for the girl. She's the youngest out of all of them, if any harm comes her way I'm willing to bet they'll think irrationally." Eiko said, his two comrades looked at him incredulously...

"Yeah but, what does that mean for us?" Jiro asked from beside him, he didn't want to end up being crushed into the dirt because the Fire Lord was too much of a wimp. "They'll do anything to get her back of course! And it'll be simple from there, the Fire Lord's throne should've been given to the princess, not the banished prince." "She's gone crazy, Eiko. Let's just kill him." "We will, but we start from the inside. The avatar and his friends are nothing but children! They know nothing, and quite frankly, that will drive the world into chaos." 

The three ex-generals looked to the rest of the loyalists who waited for them to finish their planning. "Alright! So, we..." Eiko began, gesturing to the three of them, "Are going to sneak into the palace and take the blind earthbender. She's the weak point of that group. If she gets hurt, the Fire Lord will bend to our will. Because he will do ANYTHING to keep her out of harms way." "Are you sure about this?" A man called from the crowd, "Yes my comrades, she is the key to reverting the Fire Nation back to its old image of glory." 

There were murmurs of uncertainty. "Okay but she's an earthbender! We can't just trap her here! This place is made entirely of rock! She can just easily bust herself out of here." "Which is why we trap her in a wooden cell. The wench is blind without any earth or metal. She'll be completely vulnerable, so long as we keep her a safe distance away from anything bendable." The crowd fell silent. 

But only for a beat...

"Good luck."  
And just like that, the plan was set into motion. 

"Okay! So, while Daichi, Jiro, and I are out, five of you must stay out and guard the area, the rest will help build the wooden crate. We'll hang it off of the top of this cave. That way, there will be no earth beneath her, beside her, and the only one above her is too far from her grip. The only holes allowed will be on the sides. Not the top or bottom." Eiko discussed, and they spent that night gathering supplies while the other two rested. 

Tomorrow would be a new day. 

\----  
"Fire Lord, the amount of assassinations being sent here is growing at an alarming rate, shouldn't we do something?" An advisor of his asked, but Zuko shook his head. "Let them come. The avatar and his friends are here to protect the palace, so until then, we must focus on the damage caused by the fire nation. As well as repairing the airships. Or at the very least, replacing them." 

"The prisoners?" "If they're not from the fire nation, let them out and bring them back home." He said, and inspected the letter in front of him. It was a document about the last known whereabouts of Ursa, his mother. But they weren't of much help. Just then, a servant rushed in, "Please forgive my intrusion your highness, W-we... Well, you... Received a letter f-from the loyalists." He said, looking at Zuko in fear. But Zuko only looked at him with no malice whatsoever. 

"It's alright. Will you read it for me? It seems urgent." The servant cleared his throat nervously and began to read the parchment. "I-it's from ex-generals Jiro, Eiko, and Daichi..." He said, a little stunned since they've been keeping their silence ever since Zuko had relieved them of their duties after he found out the way they treated the new recruits. 

So, when Zuko heard their names, he leaned forward, gesturing for him to continue. Even his advisor had his eyes on the servant, intrigued as to why the three of them would suddenly send Zuko a direct message out of the blue. "He says they are planning to take action against you after they found out about you agreeing to push through with the release of those prisoners." The servant said, rolling up the parchment and looking up at the Fire Lord hesitantly, "You're dismissed, my advisor and I will discuss this and I will give you your next orders soon." 

With that, the servant left, leaving the parchment rolled up neatly on the table. His brows furrowed, then he looked up at Zuko, who had a neutral expression on his face. "Heighten the security tonight, we can't let them get what they want." He said, with a slight bite to his voice but nonetheless, in his usual self. The advisor bowed and made his way out of the room. Zuko sighed, letting his shoulders drop. 

He was utterly tired of all this bullshit, so he went to his room and changed out of his heavy robes and into simpler ones and made his way over to the courtyard where Aang and Katara were doing gross couple stuff, Sokka and Toph messing around, and Iroh sipping a cup of tea as he watched the teens have fun. "Zuko! You're finally here!" Aang yelled, air scootering his way over, and Zuko smiled. "Ugh, the reports were so boring. Not really anything interesting. Honestly, I just wanted to go rest for a bit out here with the turtleducks. All that royal stuff had me drained." He groaned, and Aang shot him a sympathetic look. "Well, at least now you can hang out with us!" "Yeah. Good thing too. A little longer and I would've fallen asleep." 

He and Aang were now sitting in front of the turtleduck pond as he fed them the bread he stole from the kitchens on the way there. "This is nice." He muttered, and Aang smiled at him. Zuko swore this kid's personality was taken from the fucking sun. He wondered if his cheeks hurt from smiling so much. 

"Hey Zuko, how's the wound doing?" Katara asked, "Little better. I mean it doesn't really hurt as much as two weeks ago. More of a dull ache, but I can't full on stretch yet. Because it feels like I'm being seared from the inside." He said calmly, Katara inwardly winced. A small part of her feeling like this was her fault. She shouldn't have been standing there. Zuko wouldn't have gotten lightning frying him from the inside out had she not been standing there in the open. 

"-Katara! Snap out of it." She heard Aang's worried voice from her trance. She flinched and then blinked twice. She looked up to see Zuko and Aang looking at her worriedly. "You okay?" Zuko asked, and she nodded. He shot her a look of disbelief but dropped it anyway. 

"Zuko look!" He heard Sokka say from behind him, and so he did. There he saw a statue of him on his coronation day, a smile on his face as his hand was outstretched in a wave. "Toph made you a statue!" "Wow." "I know right?!" "Gotta hand it to you Toph, the details are amazing!" "Thanks Sparky." She replied, crossing her arms with a proud look on her face. 

They spent the rest of the day just enjoying each other's presence. Even listening to some of Iroh's stories when he travelled a long time ago. As well as how life was like before Aang got stuck inside an iceberg for a century. He truly had a disdain for his great grandfather Fire Lord Sozin for wiping out such a great culture such as the air nomads all because he was hungry for power. 

As the cool night's breeze flowed through the palace, the children were lulled to a peaceful sleep. Unaware of the three figures lurking in the shadows waiting for the perfect moment to strike. When the coast was clear, they made their move. Chi-blocking the guards who saw them and gagging their mouths to keep them from screaming. Nothing was ruining this mission. 

After looking through the rooms, they finally came across Toph. Sleeping soundly on the bed. Gently, they made their way over to her bed. But Jiro made the mistake of accidentally stepping on a creaky floor board. This caused Toph to shoot upright and off the bed, still on edge from her experience on the airships, as she stood on a defensive stance. She couldn't sense much since the vibrations on the earth below her were too foggy due to the thin planks above them. But she was still putting up a fight. 

So she bent the rocks in their general direction. Listening to the sounds of their shoes on the floor. However, she didn't anticipate the third person sneaking up on her. Daichi was the last to enter and made sure to be nimble with his steps, timing them with Eiko's to try and trick her. 

Getting into a defensive stance he positioned himself just behind her, and Toph realized what he was going to do, but before she could land a stomp on the ground to shoot him into the ceiling, her luck ran out as he hit her with sharp and painful jabs to the back. She fell to the floor with a groan, unable to move her body. She was in a dark abyss at this point, she couldn't feel anything. 

She was completely vulnerable. 

"Zu-" Her cry for help was cut off by a piece of cloth being pressed against her mouth, the stranger's companions tying it to the back of her head. She struggled to move, and she felt the cold meteorite bracelet she wore being slid off of her arm and thrown away. She tried to protest but to no use as she couldn't exactly move, when she tried to yell for help, the last thing she remembered was something hard collide with the side of her head. 

Then everything fell silent.

\----  
The next morning, the gang had assembled on the huge dining table to eat breakfast. But before anyone could get a bite in, a guard came in, out of breath from running. "Fire Lord Zuko! There was a break in! We found guards tied up and gagged outside this morning!" A sudden uneasiness came over the room and Zuko shot up from his seat, "What?!" "I'm sorry my lord. It seems that they were chi-blocked. A few of them had bruise or two when we checked." Zuko's fists clenched and the room fell silent. 

"Check the entire palace! Do a head count! Make sure to find every clue that can lead to us finding these traitors!" He ordered, and the guard was out of the room. A tension-filled silence was all that was left in the room. Then suddenly they heard Aang blurt out a name. "What?" "Where's Toph?!" They're eyes widened all at once, and they ran to her room. 

Dread filled their beings as they saw the holes on the floor, cracks on the walls, and Toph's meteor bracelet lying in the middle of everything. As well as some dried blood on little parts of the room. They could only hope it wasn't Toph's. Zuko growled in fury, Sokka and Katara's eyes darkened, and Aang was silent. His breath hitched. The grip on his staff was knuckle-white. Like a dam about to break, he stepped outside. 

"Did you find any clues?" Zuko asked, his tone one of worry, dread, and fury. "We heard from the guards that they went north, but no one's seen their hideout before. I'm... Sorry Lord Zuko." His fists shook, "Leave." And the guard hastily did, he let out a rage-filled roar. How dare they take Toph?! He swore to Agni, if they laid a hand on her, he would go ballistic. Toph was pretty much his family, the sister Ozai had stripped from him. 

He was going to find her, by all means necessary.


	2. Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team Avatar comes face-to-face with Jiro, Eiko, and Daichi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact! This entire thing was made when I was sleep deprived! So.... It ain't beta read. We die like men.

She heard the ringing in her ears. Her head was pounding. She groaned, her back hurt from the hard surface beneath her. She squinted, her hand thumping onto the surface beneath her to get a view of where she was. But when she felt nothing, she sat up straight. Wincing at the rush of pain washing over her. "What the-"

Memories of the night before flooded her mind while her hands collided with the side of the crate. Both sides were filled with small square-shaped holes to let her breathe, but the top and bottom of the cell was solid wood. When she tried to stand, she felt the crate sway, so she clutched the cell's walls tightly. Squeezing her eyes shut, waiting for the swaying to subside. 

"Hey! You dipshits better let me out of here, now!" She yelled to whoever was there, slamming a fist onto the side of the crate. Daichi and one of the loyalists looked up at the hanging crate, "Shut up! You're hanging in the middle of this cave, away from anything you can bend. So if I were you, I'd watch my mouth. You're surrounded by firebenders. Remember, one small flame can be your demise little girl." Daichi replied from the ground, Toph's eyes widened, but she didn't dare shut up. 

"Just you wait until my friends find me and let me out of here! Your asses are so going to be as good as dirt!" She retorted, slamming her fist back on the crate. The wood was too thick for her to penetrate, and even if she did, she'd end up falling to her demise. This was just like the airship, but this time, no one was there to hold or rescue her. She swallowed down her fear, keeping a level head. Her friends would come for her soon, she just had to wait. 

Daichi's eyes narrowed, he made his way up to her cell, a rope in hand. That child was too noisy for her own good. When he entered the cell, she lunged for him, only to have her wrist grabbed and slammed behind her, she was pinned to the wall as he tied her wrists behind her back. Toph kept squirming around, but after a slap to the face, she stopped. But he could see the fury swirling in her eyes. 

When she was locked back up and alone, she blinked the tears away, no way in hell was she going to cry about such trivial matters. All she had to do was be patient. She just had to wait and listen. Her friends were going to get her out of this wooden hellhole and she'd be given the honor of crushing her kidnapper's heads into pancakes. 

'Breathe Toph... In and out, in and out, in and out... You'll be fine.' 

\----  
"I came as soon as I heard." "What?" "Uncle!" Zuko said, running forwards to wrap his uncle in a hug. "They took her uncle!" He growled, "I know, I know, which is why you have to stop panicking. If you do, you won't be able to think straight and might lead us into a deeper hole." "They didn't leave a lot of clues... Other than the letter they sent a few days ago and some guards saying they headed North."

Sokka was busy on the table, studying the map of the Fire Nation, trying to find some place that would look like a good hiding spot. Katara was off treating the guards that had minor burns from the attack, as well as making sure their chi was clear. Aang was outside meditating, trying to calm down. But everyone knew he wasn't calming down anytime soon. 

"This is all my fault. I should've stayed with her! I should've assigned guards to all our rooms! I should've taken care of that issue instead of letting it grow." Zuko muttered, bracing himself on the table across Sokka, who's brows were furrowed. "Zuko, no. We couldn't have known they'd come after Toph. Or that they were even going to attack that night. They caught us off-guard, but at least now we know who they are. So stop blaming yourself, no one could've known." Sokka said, but Zuko only sighed in defeat. 

"If any harm comes her way, I'll never forgive myself." "Don't worry. Toph's a tough cookie. She'll make it through." He said, but there was no denying Sokka's anxious gaze. He was radiating uncertainty, but Zuko believed him anyway. "Maybe they hid her here." Iroh suggested, pointing over to what seemed to be just a plain patch of trees. "I don't understand." "Well, when I was general, I remember Eiko and Daichi spending their leisurely breaks there. Because in the center of that place is a huge cave that's uninhabited by any wild creatures. It's a good hiding place from Ozai and his guardsmen. That is, until they were discovered and the place was blocked off ever since. 

"If it's been blocked off then why-" "They could've gotten an earthbender to remove the stones blocking their way. Maybe through bribery." Iroh explained, but then, Katara and Aang walked in, parchment in hand. A look of worry on their faces. "It's from a guy named Eiko, it's addressed to you Zuko." Katara said, handing him the paper. Which he spread out onto the table, they all huddled over him to read the letter as well. 

"Fire Lord Zuko, 

It is with our best regards that you step down from the throne. What you've been doing to the Fire Nation is endangering our economy as well as our culture as the greatest civilization to exist. Your duty as Fire Lord is for the best of our Nation, not others. Which is why Ozai is a much more preferable Fite Lord than you. Because you're a child, a boy who has learned nothing from his time away from the homeland. Naive and weak. Which is why we're keeping your friend until you give up the crown to Ozai. Remember, dearest Fire Lord, her blood will be in your hands lest you make the wrong choice. 

Sincerely,   
Eiko."

Sokka made a sound of disbelief and disgust. "These geezers are crazy! They're going too far!" "He's right Zuko. What they're doing isn't right, having you trade your crown over to some lunatic! And quite frankly, I think the Fire Nation's actually been doing better now!" Katara replied from beside him, a certain bite accompanied her words. 

But only the last sentence was in Zuko's mind. It was bugging him like some sort of demon. 'Her blood will be in your hands.' The voice chanted, over and over again. Zuko's breath began to quicken. Then he stood abruptly and left the room, making his way to his quarters. The gang was left stunned. But his uncle knew what was going on and followed him. 

"Zuko?" His uncle called softly, his eyes drifting over to the hunched up boy on the bed. "Go away, uncle." But Iroh stood still, "My nephew, we will find a way around this. You don't have to surrender the crown to Ozai." "That's not it, uncle... It's just... What if they hurt her? What if... What if they... T-they..." He couldn't bring himself to say it, it was too cruel. The thought itself made Zuko shiver in disgust. 

What if they planned to take advantage of Toph? 

As if Iroh had read his mind, he sighed. He hated seeing his nephew so stressed, so conflicted. Iroh knew that Zuko considered Toph as family. Hell, even Iroh himself saw Toph as his family. "Zuko, you shouldn't blame yourself for what happened. And I'm sure that Toph won't give them a chance to even touch her in ways they shouldn't. Remember, she's the greatest earthbender in the world, she is a resourceful one and will find a way to protect herself from these traitors." 

He wrapped his arms around Zuko who was silent. He knew that Zuko was listening. So he could only smile when he leaned into his touch. It was times like these that he was really reminded of Lu Ten, who would isolate himself from the world if he was stressed or just upset in general. "We're going to have to check out that area you assumed Toph was being kept in." 

Iroh nodded, and within half an hour, Zuko regained his composure and made his way back to the throne room. "Zuko! Are you okay? Sorry if we overwhelmed you..." Aang asked, immediately floating right beside him. Aang himself had been quite distant, and with Toph's absence, rarely smiled given the circumstances of Toph's absence. 

"I'm doing... Better. And no, you didn't overwhelm me... It's just... I can't help but feel responsible for this. I mean, who knows what they plan to do to her?! Those generals were relieved for a reason." This time all eyes were on him, "What are you talking about Zuko?" Sokka asked, "The men who took Toph were generals before... But when I became Fire Lord I got multiple reports about them and relieved them of their duties." "You don't mean... " "There's a reason their troops didn't have women in them." Everyone let out a collective look of surprise. 

"We have to get her out of there!" Katara said, "Which is why we have to make a plan!" Sokka replied, and they all huddled up and began to make a plan to sneak over to their alleged hiding place. "Aang, you should be the one to sneak over there." "Alone?!" "Yes alone, we can't risk all being caught together. And besides, you're the avatar. You can take them." "Can't Zuko come with me?" "We'll all be watching from the distance don't worry." 

They weren't aware of the traitorous servant eavesdropping on them from outside.   
\----  
"Let them come." "We'll be absolutely vulnerable! What do you mean let them come?!" "Let them. They're here to rescue their friend. But we're a step ahead. As long as she's in the midst of danger, they can't lay a hand on us." "I don't know if you've noticed, but the ground beneath us is made of earth!" 

"Then we'll chi-block her." Jiro replied, Eiko and Daichi shared a look. "If you're so sure, then we'll follow your lead." Just then, the familiar voice of their prisoner rang from above. "You better let me out if you wanna stay alive!" She yelled, and Eiko had had enough. She'd been yapping for the last hour. 

"Don't you make me come up there!" Eiko snarled, but Toph wasn't going to let him get to her. "Fuck you! If you think Zuko's gonna give up that crown, you're wrong. He's not a stupid dipshit like you! Chi-block me all you want, but you know I'm right." She yelled back, Eiko had enough and made his way up to her cell. "You better stop yapping or else I'll have to stick something in that mouth of yours. Put you to good use..." He told her, and that's where Toph visibly stiffened.

He pointed a fire dagger next to her throat, "Listen hear you little brat, I will make sure to tear you and your friends apart. One by one. So if you think you're some almighty fucking child, let me give you a reality check. The 'greatest' earthbender in the world is stuck hanging in the middle of a cave with no access to earth or metal. So she's completely vulnerable... Am I right?" 

Toph kept her mouth shut, and Eiko smirked, "That's what I thought." He stood up again, and made his way out. Locking the cell behind him. When she heard the lock snap shut and the hiss of flames quiet down, she let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. She felt her hands begin to shake but she paid it no mind as she tried to think of her friends that were probably looking for her... 

'They're on their way, they'll find you...'

\----  
That night, Aang and the others had just landed outside the forest on Appa, separating ways as he flew off on his glider, the others making their way over to their assigned hiding places. In the midst of a patch of trees, he saw the cave Iroh had told them about. 

So he landed right above, peering down through a small hole he earthbended. There, he saw the men looking right at him. He froze as he watched their smirks grow. 'So much for the element of surprise.' Aang thought, backing away, he earthbent a hole big enough for him to slide through. 

He went for the wooden crate first, narrowly avoiding their blasts of fire. "Toph? Toph! Wake u-" He cut himself off abruptly... 'A sack of.. They knew.' As realization began to set in, he could feel heat coming from right behind him. He turned around to see flames eating its way up to him. He immediately jumped off the crate and landed on the ground. 

"What did you do to her?!" He demanded, facing the two ex-generals. "The crown." Was all they said, "Where is my friend?!" He asked again, this time, he trapped Daichi and Eiko in earth to keep them from running. Their smirks only grew. Aang could feel the horror settling in his stomach, "WHERE?!" "Over here, Avatar." Another voice called from behind him. 

He turned around to see Jiro standing there, Toph being held up by her collar. She had a cloth wrapped around her mouth and her hands were tied behind her back. She wasn't thrashing around but awake or not, Aang didn't mind, all he wanted was to get her out of his grip. "NOW!" He yelled, but Jiro was ready for them. 

He deflected Zuko's attacks and avoided Katara's water whips, which ended up hitting Zuko instead. "Ow!" "Sorry!" Katara called back, and focused on trying to hit Jiro. Eventually, Jiro must've gotten tired of running and yelled for them to stop, they weren't planning to, of course, but then he held a small flame right next to Toph's throat. "Not another step Avatar." 

They all froze in place. "LET HER GO!" Zuko yelled, "Make me!" Jiro yelled back, losing focus and missing the sound of a boomerang coming right for the back of his head. Not expecting the impact, he lost his balance, but his grip on Toph was still firm. "What the-" He wasn't able to finish his sentence as the boomerang hit him right in the face on its way back to its owner. This caused Jiro to lose his grip on Toph as he doubled over in pain, holding his nose. 

"That's from the water tribe!" He yelled, sliding under Jiro's outstretched arm and catching Toph in the process. "Dai Li!" It was all Jiro could yell, and soon the agents came flying down, apprehending Katara first, then Zuko. But Sokka ran, he couldn't let them get their grimy hands on his best friend. 

"Sokka get out of here!" He couldn't respond and made a run for it. That was until he saw the arrows being shot towards them by the other loyalists. "Oh for crying out loud!" He groaned and tried to hide in between the trees. But the arrows were persistent. He had no clue on what to do. But then a roar emitted from about a feet or two away, and then a gust of wind came out of nowhere. 

The trees and vines cleared out to reveal Appa and Momo. Sokka had never been more thankful for those two and climbed onto his saddle. He undid Toph's bindings and noticed how there was a bruise on her left cheekbone. He winced as he checked her for any other injuries. Thankfully, he found nothing else other than her wrists a little red. 

He waited for the other three, hiding in the forest on top of Appa. It wasn't until ten minutes later that he heard the sound of panting coming towards them. There he saw his companions and sighed in relief. "You guys made it!" "Barely." "What're we going to do about the generals?" "Don't worry.... They'll learn." Aang said, Sokka couldn't help but feel a little uneasy but he just shrugged it off. 

\----  
Jiro and his comrades were now cornered in their cave by an armadillo bear that heard the shuffling nearby. There was no way out as the Avatar and his friends had blocked off their only form of escape.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zuko can't help but blame himself.

Around twelve hours had passed since they'd arrived and her friends weren't leaving her side. The fear of staying there in the cold at night as well as the bat ramming the back of her head had taken a toll on her and left her body exhausted. Her friends had taken their time staying by her side, waiting for her to wake up. 

It was around dawn during Aang's turn when he shot up from his light slumber after hearing Toph's groan. Unable to hold back his happiness, he wrapped her in a bone-crushing hug. "Don't touch me! Get off me!" She yelled, confusion and fear in her eyes as she tried to push Aang away. "Toph! You're okay!"   
Once she'd heard his voice, she relaxed.   
"You guys found me." She gasped, "Yeah, we did." The others must've heard Toph's sudden yell and rushed into the room. "Toph!" They all yelled in unison and gave her their fair share of hugs. Usually, she'd push them all away with protests. But today, after being forcefully separated from them, she'd let it slide. 

"Are you okay? Does anything hurt?" Katara asked, "Just my head. Nothing some rest can't fix." Toph replied, waving off the question. Zuko couldn't hold it back any longer... "What happened that night?" The room fell silent. Zuko didn't care that he ruined the mood, he had to know. Toph wrung her hands together and then spoke. 

"Well, y'know... They caught me off-guard, tried to sneak into my room but one of them stepped on a squeaky floorboard. It was bad enough that my vision was messed up by the wood, but I didn't expect a third guy. And when I did, he just chi-blocked me. I mean, I tried to yell for help but they gagged me and hit my head with something hard. Next thing I knew, I woke up in that stupid crate." 

"They didn't... Touch you did they?" He asked worriedly, not understanding what Zuko meant at first, Toph replied with, "Yes they did. But it was nothing I couldn't handle." "What?!" Sokka suddenly yelled from beside her, "What do you mean 'nothing'?!" Toph's eyes narrowed, "I mean that I can handle a slap or two to the face, Sokka." She replied with snark. 

"That's... Okay. Yeah, okay." Sokka said, deflating slightly. Toph herself looked a little dejected but they knew why, she hadn't understood the question very well. The look of realization on her face settled. She turned back to Sokka, "Look, Snoozles. I understand that you were worried and... Well... I'm sorry I burst out on you like that." She muttered, and Sokka smiled, wrapping her in a hug. To which she protested to after a moment. 

"Okay, that's enough." She said, pushing him away. "We're glad you're okay though Toph." Aang said from beside her. "And I'm glad you guys were able to find me." She muttered, a smile of thankfulness on her face. "They told me that they were going to rip us into shreds... I mean, I was so sure they were planning to do what you thought they did. But then they just... Left me alone, well, until one of them suddenly entered that stupid crate and whacked the side of my head." She spat. 

Zuko closed his eyes and swallowed down his guilt. "Well, you should get some more rest. So that tomorrow you'll be up and ready, yeah?" He said, and Toph nodded. "So, is anyone going to stay here?" Aang asked, "Toph will you be alright sleeping alone or do you need company?" "I..." It seemed almost like she was pondering this. "I'll be fine." She replied softly. 

"Alright then... But if you need something we'll be here." Aang replied, and Toph only nodded. But before anyone could leave the room, she suddenly asked for her space bracelet. "Here. They left it in the middle of your room." Sokka whispered, sliding the band around her bicep. "Night Toph." They said, and she waved them off. 

That night, Toph was restless. She couldn't sleep, nightmares of the generals, the airships, both kept waking her up. She was tossing and turning constantly, shooting up covered in sweat, shaking. She swallowed down her fear. Feeling the cool air of the night she couldn't even find comfort in that like she usually would. Instead, she'd be reminded of sleeping in that stupid crate, tied up with a stinging feeling in her cheek as tears silently slid down her cheeks as she was left completely vulnerable. The one feeling she hated, despised, it made her sick. 

So she stood up, rubbing her arms to try and warm herself through her pajamas. But the thin cotton sleeves could only do so much. Walking out of her room, she walked around the palace. Letting her feet take her where they wanted to. She came to a stop when she was standing the middle of the garden. 'I try to warm myself up and my feet bring me outdoors.' She thought, a smile on her lips. 

But what caught her off-guard was the other figure slumped under a tree. "Sparky?" She called softly, feeling him flinch. "What are you doing up?" He asked, "Couldn't sleep. I was cold." She replied, it wasn't a lie per se. She made her way over to sit next to Zuko who was looking up at the moon. "I failed." He muttered suddenly. 

"What? Failed?" Toph asked, she didn't understand. God, it was times like these she hated being thirteen and not being able to understand brooding teens. "You. I let them take you... I..." Zuko trailed off, the guilt bubbling in his gut had overflowed and was now spewing out like crazy. "Zuko, you didn't fail anyone. What are you talking about?" Toph replied incredulously.

"I... Couldn't protect you. I swore to myself I wouldn't let anyone hurt you like that, but I let it slip through my fingers. I brushed them off and look what happened. How am I supposed to be a good Fire Lord if I can't even protect my family?" He ranted, Toph was taken aback. 'He sees me like that?' "And I know you're not helpless, but look at what happened! You... They caught you in a blind spot. They cornered you and tied you up, trapped you in a cell that left you vulnerable to whatever they wanted to do to you. I can't help it Toph. You're like the sister I never had, and I failed again!" He cried, closing in on himself once he let it out. 

"Sparky... Zuko, you didn't 'fail' anyone. Again, no one knew this was going to happen. No one knew that they had their eyes on me, you're the Fire Lord so of course, first priority of protection is you. The Fire Nation can't lose you Zuko. You're the hope of your people, if they lose you now, who knows what'll happen. And like you said, I'm not helpless. I can take care of myself Zuko, I can fight for as long as I need to... So stop blaming yourself for what happened." She said, a hand on his shoulder. 

"Besides... I know you guys will always find a way to get me back." She says, and Zuko leans into her touch. Blinking away his unshed tears as he smiled weakly. "Thanks Toph." "Good, because I don't do that often." She replied, socking his bicep, a smile on her face. Her heart had stopped racing from the nightmare a while back, and now her shivers had stopped due to Zuko radiating warmth. 

She leaned her head on his shoulder, Zuko wrapped his arm around her. She smiled in her peaceful slumber. And when morning, Iroh came across the two asleep, under the shade of the tree, Zuko's head resting on hers, Toph's arms wrapped around his torso. Iroh couldn't help but smile once he saw the peaceful look on their faces. 

When the rest of their friends came running in when they saw Toph and Zuko's bed empty, they panicked. Until Katara ran into the two under the tree, and that was enough comfort for them. They left them alone until they woke up that morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay this shit show's finally over.


End file.
